Even after a disease seems to have disappeared, it can resurface. Liberia, declared ebola-free three different times, is still fighting small flare-ups of the disease. And Nigeria is facing a new outbreak of polio after nearly 2 years with no new cases.
Earlier this month, two children in the Borno State of Nigeria were paralyzed by the debilitating virus. Since only 1 in 200 children who contract polio become paralyzed, the number of children with a less acute form of the disease may be much higher.
Malnutrition, lack of health care, and the lapse in a dedicated effort to combat polio infections are some of the reasons this area has experienced a resurgence of polio. The control Boko Haram exercises over the area makes vaccines much harder to deliver -- hundreds of thousands of children remain unvaccinated due to Boko Haram's rule.
While the Nigerian government has begun to resume vaccinations in Borno, the health system must remain vigilant if it wants to prevent future cases. Only three countries still face the challenge of eradicating polio -- Nigeria, Pakistan and Afghanistan -- all countries facing concurrent challenges of war and poverty. Polio is a preventable disease, but these conditions make it much more difficult to stop the devastating child disabilities caused by the polio virus.
As we work toward the goal of polio eradication, we also need tools and knowledge to assist current victims of the virus. Disabled Village Children, Hesperian's resource for assisting children with a range of disabilities, provides methods to make community-based rehabilitation possible in low-resource areas, as well as strategies to develop daily living skills and provide therapy. This heavily illustrated guide can be used to increase the independence and self-esteem of children with disabilities, a concern that will last long after this outbreak has ended.
Replies
Exactly
Cheryl Nelson said:
Yeah, how did it magically surface. From a lab, no doubt.
Byron wilkins said:
Here comes Bill Gates to paralyze the rest of the children in Liberia like the 60,000 in India and the 10,00o he did in Pakistan. India has a lawsuit against him. I smell a rat since this happened in the same country Ebola started.